Wednesday, September 8, 2010

C'mon Hollywood: Give Jack Bauer the Movie He Deserves!

We all have our favorite shows, but to be honest I didn’t start revisiting TV until about four or five years ago. This was around the time LOST, SUPERNATURAL and PRISON BREAK came out so naturally it was a good time to dive back in. I blew through most of the good stuff quickly and while at work my buddy Nick and I got to talking and he told me I absolutely needed to start watching 24. “Jack Bauer can do anything,” he said and he meant it. 24 was three or four seasons in at the time and I went through them like my first Red Bull of the day, I was hooked almost immediately. I’ve been an avid fan every since and though it pained me to hear season eight was the last, I’m praying that the upcoming film version does the show justice.

24 is easily one of the best cop dramas of all time.

If there were no other reasons to give 24 a grand Hollywood opus, Kiefer Sutherland would be enough. The man has such a long list of iconic film characters that it would be ridiculous to doubt him. LOST BOYS, STAND BY ME and both YOUNG GUNS films are four of my all time favorites and that’s just to name a few. Sutherland knows how to lead a film and nobody knows 24 better than him so this is a no brainer in my books. Now I’m not going to try and convince you that MIRRORS was a fantastic film but Kiefer Sutherland was the only reason I watched it and no doubt the reason I enjoyed it (aside from that insane bathtub scene, the corners of my mouth ache every time I think about it).

There’s a reason Jack Bauer was named by Entertainment Weekly as one of The 20 All Time Coolest Heroes in Pulp Culture and that’s because he encases all the character driven elements needed to be the perfectly flawed anti-hero (not to mention he’s a blast to watch). 24 reinvented the way cable television shows are made by pushing the envelope farther (and harder) than any show before it. This was a big and very bold move that Sutherland himself wasn’t even sure would pay off. "I thought, 'This is really clever and different, so there's no way they're going to pick it up but I could use the money, and no one will ever see it'." Modest yes, but thank God he was wrong.

I vote that Jack is number 1 on that list of 20.

Now as far as the film is concerned they’re going to keep it in real time which is awesome because again, this was one of the many cool ways the show stood out in the first place. There’s talk of Jack ending up in Eastern Europe but I’m sure he won’t stop there. According to Sutherland the first draft of the film is already finished (penned by Billy Ray, the screenwriter for STATE OF PLAY) so hopefully we’ll see this bad boy go into production soon. Now I’m sure a lot of fans (myself included) have been wondering where this road will take Jack and I certainly hope they don’t decide to kill the character off. I was disappointed with Renee’s death this past season as Jack was just starting to catch a break. Then again, an angry Jack is much more entertaining and effective and the world if full of asses for him to kick.

Renee was my favourite of Jack's love interests on the show.

The 24 movie is happening but as we’ve seen in the past with films like X-FILES and SEX AND THE CITY, this isn’t always a good thing. That said, the first X-FILES was a fantastic flick so I’m sure they’ll pull out all the stops here as well for the first one (I say first one as this endeavor has been talked about in a plural fashion). 24 can be the new MISSION IMPOSSIBLE in terms of a franchise and with Kiefer Sutherland leading the way I’m all for it, especially if Sutherland co-produces the films like he did with the show. It’s still far too early to tell how big of a bite Jack Bauer will take out of Hollywood but the drive is there as is the fan base so here’s hoping this gets done right and Jack knocks ‘em dead on the big screen.

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"This has been the role of a lifetime, & I will never be able to fully express my appreciation to everyone who made it possible, but when all is said and done, it is the loyal worldwide fan base that made it possible for me to have the experience of playing the role of Jack Bauer, & for that I am eternally grateful."